


One More Life

by hbrooks



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Insomnia, M/M, Post-Game, Sadness, i needed to write a short, please cry with me
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-08
Updated: 2018-04-08
Packaged: 2019-04-20 08:49:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14257296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hbrooks/pseuds/hbrooks
Summary: *GAME SPOILERS AHEAD!*Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto wait at the Citadel during the battle between Ardyn and Noctis.





	One More Life

The dark was all-encompassing, like the night itself had come alive. It had been this way for years, but it felt worse now. Noctis had gone up to the throne room to challenge Ardyn with the full power of the kings of Lucis.

Gladio crouched, looking out for any sign of his king. Prompto paced back and forth. Ignis stood quietly, his arms crossed. It had been quiet across the city for an hour or so, after the horrible sounds of Ardyn and Noctis soaring through the air as they battled it out.

The daemons had been quiet.

Then, something happened. A tiny pin-prick of light there. Gladio turned to see. Even Prompto stopped his pacing, and Ignis’ posture changed.

“Is …?” Prompto said. “Is that?”

“I believe so.” Ignis placed a hand on Prompto’s shoulder. “He succeeded.”

Gladio stood up, shielding his eyes against the rising sun. It had been 10 long years since he’d last seen the sun. It was brighter than he’d remembered. And warm, so warm.

But he knew exactly what this meant. Noctis had told them all what it meant to be the Chosen King. At first, Gladio had wanted to fight, wanted to protect his king, his love, from this fate.

It was only through gentle touch that he came around, that he had accepted that this had to happen. There was only one problem. Gladio was still here, breathing the new air of Lucis. And Noct was dead, a sacrifice to the Celestials.

Gladio hefted his weapon, feeling the familiar weight of the greatsword. There was no longer a connection to the crystal, now that Noctis was gone. The line of kings had died with him, and though the sun was rising, Gladio could feel the night in his heart.

“Gladiolus.” Ignis pulled him into a hug. “I’m sorry. We did what we set out to do. Noct fulfilled the prophecies. The starscourge is gone and our world is safe.”

“I know.” Gladio tried to hug Ignis back, but he felt lost and alone now. There was nothing that could fill his heart again, like the love of his king, his friend, his world. “I …”

They had all changed in the last ten years. Older, maybe not wiser, but they had survived. And then Noct showed up out of the blue like a breath of fresh air, like color and light had come into the world. And just as suddenly, the world was thrown back into darkness. As the sun rose a little higher, it washed the broken city in dazzling color.

“It’s beautiful isn’t it,” Prompto said.

“Yes.” Ignis let Gladio go. “It is.”

“I miss him,” Gladio said. “I know what this means. But I don’t believe it, not here.” He tapped his chest. “I need to search for his body.”

“He could be anywhere,” Ignis said. “Someone should remain here at the Citadel and my sight isn’t good enough.”

“I will go alone.” Gladio shook his head. “Prompto will stay here with you, just in case. I’ll search the city over if I need to. I need to see him. And the ring should come back to the Citadel.”

“Take a bike,” Ignis said. “There should be a few.”

Gladio nodded and swung the sword over his shoulder. “I am coming, my king.”

It took a short time to find a bike in working order, and one he could jump start. But then he was off in the direction he last saw Noct and Ardyn go.

Even with the devastation of the war on Insomnia, the path the two kings took was clearly visible. Fresh scars in the asphalt, nicks and dings in the sides of buildings, the scent of ozone, all of them drove him forward, searching, searching.

He swung through the city in the erratic pattern dictated by the whims of battle. How his king had survived and bested the madman was a feat to be proud of. But Gladio had to find Noctis. His king. His beloved.

There.

In an intersection, two men lay there on the ground, one so small and frail as to be sickly. And one tall, and grand. Gladio stepped between the two bodies. He looked at Ardyn first. The eyes were black as night, something like tar seeping through the skin. As the first rays of sun touched the far side of the street, Gladio watched.

Once the light touched Ardyn, the body shriveled and faded, as if a daemon were sent back to the hell it came from. Except the gaudy outfit.

He couldn’t avert his gaze any longer.

Noctis lay there, dressed as King of Lucis. His eyes were open, his mouth open slightly. There was nothing left in those eyes. No life left in his lips, though it reminded him very much like the times they’d kissed, Noct’s mouth waiting for his.

Gladio crouched down, his stomach tight and his muscles ready to destroy or protect. “My king.” He gently touched Noct’s hair as a morning breeze blew it into his face. “How I wish I could have been there for you, to take your place here. But I am still here.”

His eyes were still their beautiful blue, but dim, lifeless. Gladio bent closer, and kissed Noct’s cheek. The sun lit up his skin, turning the waxen color to a more lively hue. Even in death, Noctis was unbelievably beautiful.

Then, Gladio doubled over and cried, pulling the lifeless body to his chest, hoping his warmth could bring Noct back.

_“You will mourn me,” Noct said. “I know you will. As I mourn you now because there is no time left for me. Know that I love you with all my heart, my dear Gladiolus. My shield, my love. I will always wait for you to come back to me. But live. Please. For me. For Iris. For Prompto and Ignis. Together, you are strong enough. I love you.”_

The remembered words were a soothing balm. But Gladio couldn’t control his crying, his sobs ripped the very fabric of the air. And he couldn’t stop. He cried for what seemed hours, Noct limp in his arms.

“I’m sorry I failed you my love. I’m sorry!” Gladio shouted.

His words carried in the empty streets. It had been so long since they had seen anything other than daemons, that they whispered his shout back to him.

Gladio let the body down on the ground. He closed Noct’s eyes after gazing into them one last time. He gently kissed Noct’s parted lips, and closed his mouth. Now, he could simply be sleeping as there were no marks on his body.

With that, he turned around, and picked up the greatsword he’d dropped. With powerful swings, he yelled and screamed at the leftover fabric that had once been Ardyn until the tattered clothes were scattered to the winds. He dropped down and cried more, unable to help himself.

“WHY!?” he screamed to the heavens.

“It had to be done,” a voice whispered. Gentiana, her lithe figure strong as ever, took three steps toward him. “I am very sorry, my dear heart.” Her voice was cold as ice, but there was something sad there as well. “The Chosen King has fulfilled his duty.”

“I loved him.”

“We all loved him,” she said. “And he loved us in return.”

“Why are you here, Shiva?”

“You asked why. You also know why. But why him? Why now? I do not know the mind of Bahamut. But I did know that Noctis needed you. He needed your love, your strength, you Gladiolus Amicitia. He needed his dear friends Prompto Argentum and Ignis Scientia. Without you, without them, he would not have been able to fulfill his fate and save the world.”

She reached out and cupped his cheek. “Your pain is writ on your face.”

He looked down at her arm and thought instantly of slapping her away in his anger. But he checked himself. She was a goddess. And she wasn’t hurting him any more than he already was.

“It will be forever etched here in my scars.”

She let him go and turned to face the sun. “It is magnificent in its glory.”

He turned with her. Noct was still there, still looking peaceful.

“I did not come here to talk endlessly,” she said. “But with a specific message for you and for your brothers. With your love and your care, Noct fulfilled his duty. When you pass from this world, you have been accepted by the Crystal to see your king again.”

Gladio dropped to his knees. “We have?”

She turned to him and crouched down. She lifted his chin and looked directly into his eyes. “Yes. You will see your king again. You will be able to be in the beyond for your role.”

Gladio wept again, in relief. When he could see again, Gentiana was nowhere to be seen. Noct was still there. His body so small. Gladio gathered his beloved his arms and got back on the bike and headed back to the Citadel in the full morning light.

“We will live one more life, together, my king.”

His love was gone, but he would see him again. In time. And now he would remember every moment, so he could tell Noctis about his life, about everything. He couldn’t wait for that moment, to be reunited, finally, with the love of his life.

Even though tears fell free down his face, he smiled the entire ride back. Heaven waited for him, with open arms. That would be enough to carry him forward through the years.

**Author's Note:**

> I needed to write something ridiculously sad because I had a really weird day yesterday. I love these two and this just needed something. I hope you like!
> 
> Find me on tumblr hbrooks01.tumbrl.com


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